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News: We have started adding sections for the next lesson in Intermediate. We will continue adding until the lesson is complete, but get a head start now!

- January 7, 2010
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Tips

New to the site? follow these tips and you will be well on your way to learning Korean efficiently.

Use the audio extensively
Follow the lesson order
Use the forums
Use the flashcards to learn vocabulary
Study the vocabulary lists listed at the bottom of this page
Create your own sentences
Take our quizzes and pass them before moving to the next section
Do not rush yourself. Take your time and have fun.

Beginner's Korean Lessons

Welcome to Beginner's Korean! Don't let the name fool you - by the time you graduate from these lessons, you will already be well on your way to Korean mastery.

If you are just beginning to learn Korean, then this is the place for you. These courses cover everything from the basic vocabulary all the way through writing sentences, paragraphs, and participating in every day conversations. In fact, if you learn everything that is in this section and master it, all while studying vocabulary, you can carry out normal every day conversations, and Korean speakers will understand what you are talking about.

If you are looking for your very first lesson in Korean, however, we recommend you swing by the Learn Hangul section of the site first. Since Korean is written using a different alphabet than English, you should probably learn to read it before you dive into the lessons ;-) We don't play around here - there won't be any Romanization in these lessons unless it is needed - after you complete the Learn Hangul section, you will be able to read and write any Korean word with great pronunciation. Best of all, Hangul, the Korean alphabet, is very easy and quick to learn. A few solid, focused hours in that section will provide you with everything you need to read and write in a completely new alphabet - now that's pretty exciting!

If you have completed the lessons in Hangul, then you're in the right place. We're about to dive into the Korean language and build the strongest foundation in a foreign language possible. These lessons will get you ready to study Korean at an advanced level, without having to return and practice the basics later. We're going to learn it the right way from the beginning.

So let's get started! Here we go...

If you are unsure of how to proceed through these lessons, check out the brief Recommended Learning Tips and Lesson Order so you can begin on the right track. Of course, you can proceed and "drive through" the lessons in any method you wish, but we feel it would be best to provide you with a "road map" to get you started ;-)

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Essential Grammar Lessons

Pre-Lesson

This lesson introduces the fundamentals of the Korean language, such as sentence structure and how social status is built directly into the language. We finish this lesson with your first Korean vocabulary, such as hello and thank you.

Lesson One

This lesson is really the heart of the language. Here we cover popular verbs and verb conjugation in the three styles of speech. Verbs are very important in Korean, so be sure to cover this lesson very well.

Lesson Two

In this lesson we introduce the subject (이/가), object (을/를), and topic (은/는) particles, as well as what a particle is since it is new to English speakers.

Lesson Three

This lesson is an extension of Lesson One on verbs. It introduces adjectives, or descriptive verbs.

Lesson Four

This lesson introduces some basic vocabulary related to different places. More importantly, we focus on how to describe location relative to other items, and introduce the necessary particles.

Lesson Five

This lesson covers the two number systems used in Korean. You will learn how to count in both and when to use each number system. We then provide some practice while studying money and learning to count it properly.

Lesson Six

This lesson covers the past tense conjugation of verbs in the various styles of speech.

Lesson Seven

This lesson focuses on telling time and talking about time.

Lesson Eight

This lesson covers many useful particles. Specifically, we look at 도, 의, 에, 에서, 들, 만, 마다, 쯤, 정도, and 한.

Lesson Nine

In this lesson we cover many ways of saying 'and' between both sentences and individual words. We cover the use of 그리고, 과/와, 하고, 랑/이랑. We also introduce some other common conjunctions such as 그래서, 그래도, 그런데, 그렇지만, and 그럼.

Lesson Ten

In this lesson we cover how to make a verb negative by using either 안, 못, or the longer ending ~지 않다. We learn when it is appropriate to use each form.

Lesson Eleven

In this lesson we cover various future tense endings for verbs. We discuss ㄹ 거에요, ㄹ 게요, and 겠. We also learn how to attach these to past tense bases for another effect.

Lesson Twelve

This lesson helps us learn to make our sentences more descriptive and gives us more flexibility when creating sentences.

Lesson Thirteen

This lesson covers constructions 원하다, ~고 싶다, 필요하다, 야 하다, ㄹ수 있다, and others to make constructions such as I need, I want, I can, and I may in Korean.

Lesson Fourteen

This lesson covers various popular verb endings. We learn the uses of 고 있다, 을까요, 을까 하다, 을래요, 네요, 지요, 잖아요, and 는데.

Lesson Fifteen

This lesson introduces the uses of 아무, 이나, 쯤, 뭉 ㄹ까 하다 as they are used to make sentences softer.

Lesson Sixteen

This lesson teaches how to state the purpose for some action, similar to the English phrase "in order to..." or "for the purpose of...". We discuss 으러, 으려고, and 서.

Lesson Seventeen

This lesson lets us provide a reason for some event, similar to the word because in English. We discuss 서 and 으니까.

Lesson Eighteen

This lesson covers the concept of conditions, similar to the word "if" in English. We discuss 면, 으면서, 을 때, and 는 동안.

Vocabulary Lessons

Below are some vocabulary lists that are good for beginner's to learn. We cover a wide range of vocabulary from clothing and colors to web lingo commonly used on the internet. This vocabulary can easily be incorporated into your own sentences using the grammar concepts learned above.

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